1. Techinical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a facsimile apparatus, and particularly to arrangement and structure of sections of a facsimile apparatus.
2. Brief Description of the Related Arts
A facsimile apparatus generally comprises a reading section for reading an original to be transmitted and converting the original into an image signal, an image processing section for processing signals for transmission and receiving, and a recording section of an electrophotographic type for reproducing an image on a recording paper from a received signal.
As a recording section of an ordinary facsimile apparatus, a thermal recording type has been generally used. However, a recording section of a thermal recording type has disadvantages in respects of high speed recording reproductivity of a halftone image, a picture quality, retentivity of recorded images and the like, and can hardly correspond enough to increased speed and picture quality in the recent communication.
On the other hand, a recording device of an electrophotographic type uses as an image forming section of a copying apparatus, a laser printer and the like and is more advantageous in the above-mentioned respects than the thermal type. Further, since an ordinary paper can be used as a recording paper in an electrophotographic recording device, the electrophotographic recording device has a good maintenance and requires only a low running cost. Furthermore, a color image can be recorded by the electrophotographic recording device. Thus an electrophotographic recording device has many advantages. With these advantages, the electrophotographic recording device has many uses and high technical and commercial qualities.
With such a background, in recent facsimile apparatus of a class higher than the middle one, the electrophotographic recording device is used as the recording section, and the reading section and the image processing section are functionally connected to the recording section, and further the shape and appearance of the apparatus has been designed for convenient use.
In short, in such a conventional facsimile apparatus, the electrophotographic recording section having a large size and weight is settled as a main part and the reading section and image processing section are arranged thereon or therearound.
However, the facsimile apparatus in which the reading section and the image processing section are arranged on the recording section has the following problems.
Generally, in an electrophotographic recording device, a container member of a clamshell type is adopted in order to easily settle paper jamming, in which with a paper transfer path forming a boundary, an upper unit thereabove and a lower unit therebelow are connected to each other through a hinge, and the upper unit can be upwardly opened and closed.
If such a clamshell structure is adopted as the recording section of the facsimile apparatus, the reading section and the image processing section are arranged on the upper unit. Therefore, the upper unit has to have a structure and a strength capable of supporting the weights of the reading section and the image processing section and also of being opened and closed. Further, a spring force of a torsion spring for urging the upper unit upwardly has to be set according to the above-mentioned structure and strength, resulting in that the design of the recording section is limited.
Consequently, the structure of the upper unit has to be changed according to the weight and size of the reading section and the image processing section. Therefore, a common type of recording section can hardly be applied in various types of facsimile apparatus products having the difference in the largest transmittable original sizes, G III or G IV correspondence, and the like. And verious kinds of recording sections have to be designed and manufactured for various type of facsimile apparatus products, which is disadvantageous for the standardization of the products.
In order to eliminate the above-mentioned disadvantages, a facsimile apparatus has been provided in which the whole of the recording section is contained in a container member and adapted to be pulled forwardly out of the container member, the recording section and the image processing section being fitted onto the container member. However, such an apparatus becomes large-sized and heavy.
Further, a facsimile apparatus in which the reading section and the image processing section are arranged around the recording section has not such a problem of design as above-mentioned, but the occupation area of the whole apparatus becomes large.
On the other hand, in a facsimile apparatus, a paper feed tray for feeding an original for transmission is usually provided.
A paper feed tray is of a one-side basic position type or a center basic position type. A paper feed tray of a one-side basic position type comprises a tray body for mounting a paper thereon, a fixed guide which projects upwardly at one end portion of the tray body and extends in a paper transporting direction, and a movable guide member which projects from the upper surface of the tray body and extends in parallel with the fixed guide member and is movable in a direction of the width of the paper. A paper feed tray of a center base position type has, instead of a fixed guide member, a pair of movable guide members movable in the opposite directions. Such a conventional paper feed tray is most convenient to use when it is fitted to the front part of the facsimile apparatus. However, sometimes such a paper feed tray is fitted to a side of the facsimile apparatus because of a mechanical need of the apparatus. In this case, an operator has to go to the side of the facsimile apparatus so that the paper feed tray is in front of the operator, or set an original into the paper feed tray by one hand from the front position of the apparatus.
However, it is very troublesome for the operator to go to the side of the facsimile apparatus to set an original. Further, the movable guide member has to be moved so as to correspond to the size of the width of the original. However, since the movable guide member in a conventional paper feed tray is at a position far from an operator, the operator in front of the facsimile apparatus cannot easily operate the movable guide member.